– Mon Mar 7, 2011

SANAA, Yemen – Yemen's embattled president has called for national dialogue in an attempt to quell escalating protests, as thousands of demonstrators again take to the streets to demand his ouster.
President Ali Abdullah Saleh issued the call for a national conference Monday after a meeting of the country's top political and security chiefs. The state-run news agency said the conference to be held Thursday would include thousands of representatives from across Libya's political spectrum.
The Yemeni opposition swiftly rejected the call.

Opposition leader Yassin Said Numan said there would be no dialogue unless Saleh agrees to step down by year's end.
Saleh has held on to power for 32 years. He has failed to quell the protests with a pledge not to run for re-election in 2013.